Don’t expect Alex Rodriguez to put on the free Oklahoma City Thunder T-shirt, even if the jumbotron comes his way demanding so.
The former MLB All-Star was in town Tuesday night for Game 1 of the Western Conference finals at Paycom Center, sitting courtside during pregame as the Minnesota Timberwolves warmed up.
Rodriguez is part of the ownership group of the Timberwolves and WNBA Franchise Minnesota Lynx that recently completed the purchase of the team and is in the transition process.
Rodriguez and Marc Lore settled a dispute in April to finalize the sale of the teams that began in 2021.
Rodriguez and Lore initially agreed to purchase the teams from Glen Taylor in 2021 in a three-part sale. The first two parts, totaling 36% of the teams, changed hands for about $500 million as planned, according to ESPN. But in March 2024, Taylor called off the sale when he believed Lore and Rodriguez breached the terms of the sale agreement and missed a deadline to finalize the deal.
The issue went to arbitration, where a three-judge panel sided with Lore and Rodriguez.
It’s a different avenue for Rodriguez, the baseball player.
Rodriguez, known as A-Rod, is a 14-time All-Star and three-time American League MVP. He played for the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and New York Yankees.
Jacob Unruh is the deputy sports editor for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Jacob? He can be reached at junruh@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @jacobunruh. Support Jacob’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.